Bingo, Almost

Mag and I biked down to the Taj Mahal Bingo Parlor last weekend to meet Abeni and some other diehard Bingo fans. But, we got there late and there was no talking our way in to the game already underway. The man and lady at the front said it wouldn't be fair to the people already playing, but since each game is just a few minutes long, and there's a varying number of people playing each round, none of us really bought that. It more seemed they just weren't sure what we were really up to. I tried to reason with the guy but no deal. They take gaming very seriously down there.





Even when Abeni came out looking like this:


They weren't having it. (She's holding a Dauber, which you use to mark the spots on your board when the numebers are called. It's one of the best parts of Bingo I've learned.)

Mag and I had a lot of fun in the lobby though.





Then we biked over to the BEST pizza in Brooklyn at DiFara's. Dominic has been making the pizza by himself for 50 years or so. The wait can be very very long (it helps if you speak Italian) but it's well worth it. The parlor doesn't look like much, in fact it looks like every other pizza place in Brooklyn. Except that he has pots of fresh basil growing in the window. But just wait until you try it. The mushroom pie is unlike any mushroom pie you've ever had. Without going into too much detail, he uses fresh mozzarella and fresh parmesan off a huge wheel, then puts the perfect amount of homemade sauce on, and these marinated mushrooms and extra virgen olive oil. It's served with extra parm and whole stems of dried oregano. It's a good bike ride down Ocean Parkway to get there and I highly highly recommend a trip to see him before he retires. I think his son will take over but it'll never be the same.

We're going to play Bingo again soon if anyone wants to join. Abeni won $20 but that's no surprise since she's an expert. (More on this in relation to our Atlantic City Trip when I get the photos.)